What's the best video equipment for a student paper's first purchase?

(Preface: It's not about the technology. It's about the story and how you tell it. Technology is just a tool.)

Kevin Koehler, contributing editor at the Wake Forest Old Gold & Black, asked a question via Twitter Tuesday evening:

kev097 Need to recommend HD camcorder for newspaper today. Probably going with hard drive. Suggestions on models, accessories, research?

Kyle Hansen (TheSpartanDaily.com editor at San Jose State), Kevin and I discussed ideas via Twitter and I volunteered to post the equipment The Miami Hurricane plans to purchase before next fall:

• Canon HV20 a mini-DV, HD video camera (2) [should we get the HV30 instead?]
• Canon BP2L14 battery (2)
• Rode shotgun microphone (2)
• Sennheiser Evolution G2 EW100 wireless mic combo kit (1) [looks like this this has been discontinued from B&H]
  
• Includes EW100 G2 Combo System, EW100 G2 Lavalier System, ENG Handheld Microphone, Storage Case and Cables
  
• Hosa MIT-156 XLR to mini connector (1)
• EH 150 supra-aural closed back stereo headphones (2)
• Sunpak 7001DX tripod (2)
• Three-way pan/tilt head with quick release
• Tiffen 43mm UV filter (2)
  

This year we have primarily used Flip video cameras after starting off with point-and-shoots (Matt Bunch and I). These have worked OK, but the big problem was audio. The best quality videos came when we checked out equipment from the School of Communication.

And I've used my HV20, which I bought during spring break, for the paper. For example, a video of the PD press conference after a student died on campus:


(This is the pretty one the assistant multimedia editor, Matt Wallach, edited. Here is the quick-and-dirty version I posted right after the press conference, sans b-roll. I miked the chief with a lav.)

I love my HV20. It's not perfect, but it does everything I need.

More about video: Newspaper Video - Yahoo! Groups

Weigh in: What video equipment does your organization use? What do you think about The Hurricane's planned list?

Tips on doing Web video from Ricardo Lopez

Listen below to excerpts of advice Miami Herald visual journalist Ricardo Lopez (left) gave my online journalism class on Feb. 28.

I captured the audio with my Olympus DS-30 using a lav. The photo is from the new media panel during Comm Week. Will Payne, from Current TV, is on the right.

More good advice from Mindy McAdams

A great post from Mindy McAdams:

What every journalism student needs to know (now)

It's a good summary of the fundamentals and skills student journalists/journalism students should know. The most important thing, as Mindy notes, is storytelling -- something that my online journalism professor, Chris Delboni, also emphasizes.

Ricardo Lopez discusses video with online journalism class

Ricard Lopez, a Miami Herald visual journalist, gave a presentation to my online journalism class about video Thursday evening. He was joined by Candace Barbot, a photojournalist convert to video.

Ricardo last spoke at UM during Communication Week, leading one of the new media workshops and participating in the new media panel. Check out advice he and other panelists gave students here.

See examples of his work and be sure to check out Chicken Busters, which is everyone's favorite.

Wanted: Resident Butt-Kicker (Thoughts on journalism education)

Lately, I have been doing a lot of thinking about journalism schools and what journalism students are not learning.

One of the problems is that there’s too much talk. Educators have known about the Internet, multimedia storytelling and convergence for years.

No more excuses.

I realize that this post constitutes talk, but I would like to think of it more as a call to action. To make sure change happens at J-schools, I propose hiring a Resident Butt-Kicker.

I plan to expand on these in future posts, but here’s where we need to start:

1. Online first, print second: Print is not dead, but the idea of a purely "print" major should be thrown out the window. Who wants to pay money to be taught in preparation for the last century?

Start with the essential concepts of writing, reporting, editing, critical thinking, law and ethics, but don't limit it to merely one form of storytelling. Also, online journalism should not be some 400- or 500-level class that only some students take – it should be drilled into everyone's head early.

2. Think outside the classroom: How can you teach journalism without practical experience?

Ideas: Structure your class like a newsroom and provide an outlet for publication (e.g. class Web site); require students to work on campus media; require an internship – and help place them; etc.

3. Old dogs, learn new tricks: There's a disconnect among different classes, depending on the professor, as well as an even greater disconnect between professors who have been out of the newsroom for years and those who just came from the newsroom.

The journalism world is moving quickly and schools need to keep pace with their local news outlets so students may be viable job and internship candidates. Just like journalists in the professional world, professors need to be able to adapt and learn new concepts and skills.

Also, why are we being taught in a strict, limited mindset (i.e. print) that we will need to unlearn later? Don't teach me for today, or even tomorrow.

A journalism school should look ahead, being innovative and proactive in its approach, not reactive. Professors need to be a part of that.

4. Selecting J-students: There should be a multi-dimensional, more personalized interview process for students applying to an academic journalism program. Program directors should ask students about their specific interests in the field, evaluating if the candidate is open minded and willing to evolve.

5. Grades are failing: The grading process needs to change. It seems as if more students worry about getting good grades than actually learning. Grades aren’t worthless, but learning – and getting good experience – matters more.

Unintended, entrepreneurial failure (i.e. not because of laziness) should be embraced and utilized as a teaching tool – it is part of the learning process. Thus, students should be encouraged to go out and make mistakes while they are still in school.

6. Establish mentor programs: I hit on this general concept in my Top Ten List of Tips for Journalism Students (No. 7).

Upperclassmen should be paired with underclassmen in a formal, voluntary peer counseling system. Furthermore, every student should meet with a faculty adviser or mentor from time to time – and not just to discuss next semester's schedule.

SPJ recently started a mentor program for members, which is great. Nevertheless, it can't replace the local insight of a student or professor at your own J-school.

Weigh in: What do you think of these ideas? Students, what else do you want to see done at your school?

Note: The original time stamp on this post was incorrect. It has since been corrected.

An open story meeting? Let's do it!

Yoni Greenbaum recently wrote about how TMZ.com conducts their story meetings: OPEN.

I don't think this is radical at all, I think this is logical. Why haven't we been doing this all along?

His Your newsroom could learn something from TMZ… No, really post explains,

"For those of you who watch the very popular television version of the “entertainment news, celebrity gossip and Hollywood rumors” website TMZ.com, you will know that their meetings are done in the open with seemingly broad participation. Editor and founder Harvey Levin stands at the front of the room and users a clear board to note stories that the show will be using. There is a free exchange as the individual staffers (or are they editors?) offer their story ideas."

Greenbaum says near the end,

"Build the budget from those in attendance, editors can speak for staffers not in attendance, staffers can offer their own ideas based on what they’re working on or what they know is going on. Encourage that free exchange. I think you’ll find that the meeting will boost morale, encourage collaboration and even increase productivity."

He also includes the following video about The New York Times' new integrated newsroom.



I completely agree with the idea. As I commented on Greenbaum's post, it hits at the "two heads are better than one" cliche. As news editor last year I encouraged reporters to contribute story ideas in our meetings and come by the office on deadline days (Sundays and Wednesdays). As editor in chief this year I still encourage staffers to visit.

I would not say our twice-weekly staff meetings have been closed in past (any staff member is allowed to sit in or be in the office and some designers who are around sometimes do), but we have never before sent out a mass e-mail inviting staffers. But now, I will invite all of The Miami Hurricane's staffers to the next meeting and see how it works.

Our small newsroom may not be able to hold everyone, but we'll see what happens.

Weigh in: Will you try this for your next story meeting?

Even more links for student journalists

One of the new adds to my Google Reader is Pat Thornton's The Journalism Iconoclast blog. Here are some great posts.

My advice for j-students who want to make a difference (and get a job)

Build a digital résumé and make yourself stand out

Summer reading list

Give your bloggers the tools to succeed

From me (shameless, I know):
Top Ten List of Tips for Journalism Students - The Linchpen

Random business-related link
MediaShift . Digging Deeper::In Digital Age, Journalism Students Need Business, Entrepreneurial Skills | PBS

Wednesday's career advice from Poynter...and an NPR tidbit

Originally written: Jan. 30 at 10:23 P.M.

As I've said before, Poynter Online is a great resource for journalists. I read Joe Grimm's "Ask the Recruiter" column every weekday and Colleen Eddy's "Colleen on Careers" every week.

I found both of today's editions particularly interesting and relevant to student journalists:

Ask the Recruiter - Starting a Professional Web Site?

Colleen on Careers - Asking For the Moon in Online Job Ads

Also from Poynter, in last night's the E-Media Tidbits, is a great j-school-related article:

E-Media Tidbits - J-School: The Right Tools Teach the Right Mindset

Weigh in: Do you have a personal or professional Web site?

Update, 11:45 A.M.: I was listening to NPR's "Talk of the Nation" podcast when I wrote this first part of this post. A few minutes later there was an interesting conversation about the jobs and the workplace.

Check out the podcast for Wednesday, Jan. 30 at 46:48.

Below is an excellent quote from U.S. News and World Report's contributing editor for careers, Marty Nemko. Nemko said the following (at 1:05:58 in the podcast) in response to a caller who said he always asks, "Why should I work for you?" at the end of a job interview:

"A job interview should not be an interrogation, it should be a kind of first date where both of your are trying to check out whether you are right for each other and whether you should go steady. And I think that is very empowering of the worker, and an appropriate empowerment of the worker. Those kinds of questions suffuse through the interview both confidence as well as you're going to get a better sense of whether you are going to fit."

Epilogue, Jan. 31 at 2:06 A.M.: Why did it take so long to post this? Well, I couldn't find out Nemko's name before I had to go into Wednesday deadline mode. Now that we've finished, I just replayed part of the podcast to find out his full name and check it online.

Top Ten List of Tips for Journalism Students

After sharing links to interesting articles and posting my thoughts on online journalism for a little while, I wanted to compile a "top 10" list of suggestions for journalism students. I actually thought of this idea the day before Howard Owens posted his objectives for today’s non-wired journalist, which reaffirmed my desire to do this.

This list couldn't possibly include everything, but I know I would have certainly appreciated knowing several of the items as an incoming freshman. There is, of course, some overlap, but I tried to break it all down as best as possible.

Before I start, I'd like to emphasize something Rob Curley said in his remarks at ACP/CMA (thanks to Bryan Murley for the audio): "Mindset is important. Have the right mindset. ... All that being said...it doesn't hurt to have some skills."

Disclaimer: I'm a student. I've never done hiring for a professional newspaper, Web site, TV or radio station. I don't claim to be a long-bearded, learned scholar. I don't have a Ph.D., a Master's or even my Bachelor's degree yet.

There's no guarantee you'll get a job or internship if you do the following. This is merely intended to be a compilation of what I've read and heard from others who have the qualifications to give such advice. So think of it as just me relaying research to you, one student to another.

Enjoy! (Be sure to comment at the bottom)

1. Get Web savvy: But aren't all young people already? Yes, in a sense. If you're 18 to 20-something year-old student, you probably already use Facebook or MySpace, chat using an instant messenger, read news online, check a blog or two, use or edit a wiki somewhere, etc. Now take it a step further. Subscribe for e-mail news alerts and RSS feeds – make friends with Google Reader. Take advantage of what the Internet has to offer; it's not just a series of tubes. Do you know what Digg, del.icio.us, Fickr and Twitter are? You don't have to use them all, but you need to know what's out there and be able to utilize new tools (many of which are free) at your fingertips to better do your job. I have mine linked on the right side of this blog.
2. Read online journalism blogs: What are your peers doing? Ryan Sholin, Megan Taylor and Dave Lee are great destinations for students. What are professionals and professors discussing? Mindy McAdams, Mark Briggs, Paul Conley, Howard Owens, Jeff Jarvis, Rob Curley, Alfred Hermida, Bryan Murley, Paul Bradshaw, and others will give you an inside look. A good tip for expanding your blog horizons is to check out who is on the blogroll of your favorite bloggers.
3. Start a blog: The next logical step. This could be on any topic you're interested in, but be sure it's something you'd be able to write about at least once a day. A blog is a great way to keep writing. Use images and hyperlinks. Be careful about the tone and content of the blog because it's going to be part of your digital legacy, something future employer will see. You want to avoid being too opinionated about a subject you may one day cover, because it could create problems later. Also, avoid writing a rancorous partisan blog – that probably won't help you either. Be professional, but have fun. Another note: use the blog to link to all your work online, a sort-of "quick clips" page you can e-mail to a recruiter or editor.
4. Learn how to tell stories in more than one way: Journalism is essentially storytelling, so why not tell a story the best way(s) possible? Audio, video, photos, polls, interactive features and games can help. You don't have to be Steven Spielberg behind the camera or have a voice like Don LaFontaine. You don't have to be able to hack NORAD or reinvent Monopoly (no, I won't link) for the Web. To be among the most viable candidates, based on what I've been told and read, you need to be able to capture, edit and upload content you captured with a camera, voice recorder and/or video camera. It's really not that hard. Programming knowledge (HTML, CSS, etc.) is a plus, but not essential (yet?). Nevertheless, you should be able to work with programmers and online editors to tell a multimedia story. The best way to learn any skill is to do it yourself. If you're waiting for someone to take your hand and lead you down the path of multimedia, it probably isn't going to happen. Use online tutorials or courses. Practice. Learn from your mistakes. Practice some more. NOTE: As one of my professors, Chris Delboni, always says, "It's not about technology!" She's absolutely right. Technology doesn't tell the story; it helps you tell the story. And technology changes. (Foreshadowing number 10...)
5. Two important Web sites: Join LinkedIn: Like a Facebook for professionals, LinkedIn combines your resume with who know. It's great way to keep in touch with reporters, editors and recruiters you've met. You can also link to your blog, school (insert medium here)'s Web site, a page with links to your work and links to your social networking sites. If you're ever asked to e-mail a resume for a job or internship, be sure to include a link to your public LinkedIn profile – and a homepage, if you have one. Overall, this is just one more way to show your Web savvy and shape your digital legacy. Bookmark Poynter: Poynter Online should be at the center of your online journalism world. The site has articles on a variety of journalism topics, columns, NewsU training courses and will soon have social networking with the planned Poynter Online Groups. Jim Romanesko's blog on the media is a must-read. Any one who wants to go into journalism or who is in journalism should subscribe to Joe Grimm's "Ask the Recruiter" column, which runs Monday through Friday, and take a glance at Colleen Eddy's weekly "Colleen on Careers." Put all these feeds into your reader. Another area is Career Center, where you can look for job opportunities, post your resume and get career advice.
6. Are you experienced? Join campus media: This is an item that everyone should know, but for some reason people still don't do it. Why? In the most simplistic way I can rephrase it: Recruiters are not going to select you for internships without some kind of previous experience in that field, and you need internships (note the plural) to get a job. Dabble in the various student media at your college or university. Find the one you like the most and focus on it, but don't leave the others behind. Establish working relationships in the spirit of cooperation/convergence to better tell the story. You need to be familiar with other forms of storytelling (see number four). Gear it towards the Web (number one) and blog about it (number three). Look for off-campus opportunities: When I took Miami Herald sportswriter Michelle Kaufman's sports reporting class last spring, she told of how she, as a student journalist, would go through the UM team rosters and pitch features to a player's hometown paper. Be entrepreneurial. You're going to need clips, and simply working for a campus news outlet isn't likely going to be enough, depending on where you apply. Try to string for your hometown or college town paper during the summer to get clips and quality experience. But when? Don't wait until you're a senior, or even a junior or a sophomore. If you can, try to do it before you even get to college; experience in high school helps with this. Once you're in school, apply for multiple internships EVERY summer. Leave the comforts of a familiar setting if you can. The only way you have a chance anywhere is to apply. Interview as an underclassman, even as a graduating high school senior to help you evaluate where you are and where you need to be to get a position. This will also help you establish a relationship with a recruiter early on in the process.
7. Utilize campus resources: Part I -- Talk to older students: Who are the best professors? What should I being doing this semester, next semester, next summer, next year? Talk to your peers. Find a student mentor. Professors and deans make great mentors as well (see part II), but having a peer – someone who you can better identify with – guide you is a great asset. As a first semester freshman, I met a journalism/political science major who was two years older and offered a lot of great advice for both areas. Part II -- Get to know your professors: Assistance can also come from professors, outside the classroom. Shocking, I know. You likely have access to a wealth of academic and professional knowledge in your journalism school or department – take advantage of this. I enjoy talking to my professors and, in the many countless hours I've spent chatting with them in their offices, I've received a great deal of help. Internship advice, information on upcoming classes, story ideas, study abroad opportunities and more. Where should you look to intern and/or freelance? Networking is huge (i.e. LinkedIn and next item) and professors are probably some of your best connections to newspapers, TV, radio and online news sites. Even if they didn't work at whatever organization you want to go to, they might know someone who does.
8. Network: Meet people. This is an essential part of your job as journalist. If you can't network with students, journalists, professors, reporters, editors and recruiters, what does that say about you're ability to connect with readers/viewers and maintain good contact with sources? This overlaps with the previous two items, but networking warrants its own segment. Networking will help you do your job better, as well as get a job or internship. You're much more likely to get a position you want if you know someone at the paper. The best references are people who the recruiter or editor knows and trusts, or those who have a well-known reputation. But how? Go to job fairs and conferences. Comment on blogs and articles. E-mail your favorite writers and reporters.
9. Know the business: Subscribing to Romanesko (part of number five) will help you keep up with the industry in which you hope to work. Another great way to do so is by reading Editor & Publisher. If you can have a conversation with a recruiter or editor about the current state of the news business it will show two things: 1) You're passionate about the profession and 2) You're not just another green college student – you comprehend the world you want to get into, its harsh realities and why people are both optimistic and pessimistic. Reading blogs (item two) and talking with professionals (item eight) will help you to do this.
10. Be able to evolve and have an open mind: Above all, you must be able to adapt to the changing world of journalism. Evolving is at the heart of numbers one through five. This concept also involves having an open mind, as Curley and others note. Similarly important is being entrepreneurial (six) and being able to do it yourself (four). Being spoon-fed ain't happen, folks. You need to take the initiative to learn on your own. A Jan. 9 post by Paul Conley triggered a wide-spread discussion about training and adapting. While I don't think that train has left the station (sorry for the horrible pun), training should not be a crutch. Training should be supplement, a way to learn new tips and tricks. (Insert "old dog" cliché here).

Weigh in: Did you find this list useful? What would you add or remove? I will take into consideration suggestions and recommendations for adjusting this list.

Past posts with tips:
Trying to 'survive and thrive' in journalism (Dec. 15, 2007)
Talking dirty diapers (Dec. 17, 2007)
Poynting out one's online identity (Dec. 27, 2007)
Non-wired journalists and non-wired cameras (Dec. 30, 2007)
Links about journalism education (Jan. 6, 2008)
Bloggers' thoughts that student journalists should heed (Jan. 11, 2008)
More words of wisdom from journo-bloggers (Jan. 15, 2008)

Quick tip: Use RSS

RSS feeds are a great way to get news and updates. I use Google Reader, which I find very easy and clean with plenty of good features. I also check it on my smartphone from time to time. Whatever reader you choose to use, you will find it makes your online life so much easier--no more millions of tabs open with endless news and blog posts to read.

RSS is short for Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary

Here are some good references from Megan Taylor's blog, SOJo: Student of Online Journalism, for those who are not familiar with RSS. The first post is from today, the others I found under "Most Popular Posts."

• An introduction to RSS (Jan. 15, 2008)
  
• Staying in the know with RSS (May 19, 2007)
• 10 ways to combine media and RSS (April 3, 2007)

Weigh in: Do you use RSS feeds? If so, what reader do you use?

More words of wisdom from journo-bloggers

As I hope is obvious by now, this blog is intended to be a resource for journalism students, in addition to discussing online journalism and The Miami Hurricane. Here are three links that are very insightful:

paulconley: Three job tips for students (Paul Conley)

Teaching Online Journalism » Getting (and keeping) a job in journalism (Mindy McAdams)

BuzzMachine » Blog Archive » A diploma and a blog (Jeff Jarvis)

A phrase that I've seen on various journalism blogs is "if you're reading this, you're already doing something right." I'll echo that sentiment and emphasize that students need to go further.

Jeff Jarvis' post is a compilation of comments about journalism students and blogs. You obviously read blogs. That's good. Read more. Keep reading. Different j-bloggers give different time periods to read blogs. I think you need to read enough to get a feel for it. That could mean a couple days or a couple weeks. Whatever you feel comfortable with, as long as you do it.

Weigh in: What are you doing to become a better journalist?

Update: I'm putting the finishing touches on my Top Ten List of Tips for Journalism Students. Yes, it's so close to completion that I'm now capitalizing and italicizing it.

Bloggers' thoughts that student journalists should heed

Similar to the links I posted on journalism education a few days ago, here are some bloggers' thoughts on the skills and such that student journalists should note.

Further notes on the new journalism skillset » Invisible Inkling (Ryan Sholin)

Teaching Online Journalism: Dreams vs. reality in journalism ambition (Mindy McAdams)

What sort of things should an aspiring journalist be thinking about? (Rob Curley)

Take note of what these three detail and be sure to subscribe to their blogs.

I'm glad I waited a day to publish this post, because Ryan Sholin wrote a post called Your real competition, which links to related Paul Conley and Dave Cohn posts, that all student journalists should be aware of.

If you go to interview for an internship or job at a place that says what Ryan writes below, you'll A) Not be exposed to the kind of working environment that will help you compete for jobs and B) Probably not have a job very long because the organization will become irrelevant to most readers, especially younger ones.

"If you’ve said the words ‘Oh, well we’ve always done it that way’ in the last FIVE YEARS, you have a problem with addressing the question of who is competing with your organization.

If you’ve said the words ‘Oh, but that won’t work here’ in the last THREE YEARS, you definitely have a problem with addressing the pace of change in the news business."

I'll soon post a Top 10 list of advice for student journalists that will help them to stay relevant, viable and competitive in the evolving world of journalism.

Links about journalism education

A journey through the murky depths of my electronic correspondences (read that, trying to clean out my Gmail inbox), brought me to the ACP Web site and led me to these very interesting reads:

Are journalism schools ‘getting it’? Jarvis, Greenslade, Woods - Editors Weblog- Analysis

Pajamas Media: What Journalism Schools Should Be Teaching

Is journalism school really unnecessary? - Editors Weblog

I found this less recent article article by ZDnet's Larry Dignan after a quick Google search of "journalism education." How journalism education should change | Between the Lines | ZDNet.com

"...most schools still segment folks–magazine focus, TV focus, newspapers etc. All of those specialties should be infused with online learning." - Larry Dignan, executive editor of ZDNet news and blogs

Looking forward to future j-education coverage from the SPJ Classrooms and Newsrooms blog:

"For the August 2008 J-Ed issue might we analyze and evaluate the various ways newsrooms and classrooms intersect ~ be they innovative student internships or practica, unusual professional development programs for instructors, curricula that integrate newsroom practices or products into instruction, or the recruitment and retention of professionals into the academy? This weblog would be a perfect venue to propose or flesh out ideas."

Click Quill 2008 Journalism Education Issue for the original post.

I'm already pondering some ideas.

Weigh in: To students, what do you want to learn? To editors, what should we learn?

Non-wired journalists and non-wired cameras

Interesting links:

Howard Owens' media blog - 2008 objectives for today’s non-wired journalist
This is a good list for all journalists. The comment section is an interesting read as well. I've been working on a top 10 list of my own that relates to journalism students because too many of them do not understand they need more than a journalism degree and basically reporter skills.

"I suspect there are still too many non-wired journalists in most US newsrooms. Either out of fear, indifference or hubris, too many reporters and editors resist using the Internet for anything beyond the occasional Google search (and heaven forbid they ever click a search result link to Wikipedia) and a daily dose of Romenesko (and heaven forbid if you call him what he is, a blogger)." - from Howard Owens challenge post

The Boston Globe - Newton school newspaper gets the scoop on hidden cameras
A high school paper doing good journalism is always a nice read.

UPDATE, Dec. 31 at 1:04 A.M.: Howard Owens' challenge has been reverberating across the journo-blogosphere the past few days. At almost every turn, there's mention of it.

As a general comment, for student journalists wanting an "inside" at the community they hope to soon join, read the blogs written by journalists! I've been reading and clicking through to all kinds of knowledge treasure troves on the Web and learning a great deal from the nuggets (and sometimes tomes) that are posted on these sites.

I will continue to add these blogs to my favorite links area, so always be sure to check that area frequently.

Weigh in: How connected are you? Do you read blogs? Blogs about journalism? What are your favorite journalism sites and blogs?

Poynting out one's online identity

Mallary Jean Tenore wrote a great article on Poynter Online called "Journalists Develop, Dismiss Digital Identities," which offers several perspectives on the topic from journalism professionals, young and old. Click the link or image (linked from Poynter) to read the article.

I thought the timing was great because in the past few months I have been more actively working to shape my online identity. For instance, I became very aware of the concept of the "digital legacy" after attending an ethics session by Poynter's Kelly McBride at UM, during which she discussed this topic in reference to journalists and people named in articles. Paul Conley's remarks as part of a resume-writing panel at the national ACP/CMA in Washington, D.C. also spurred me to reevaluate my presence on the Web.

"A digital identity is your presence on the Web -- the sites and accounts you register for and create that help determine who you are and what you do online," Mallory Jean Tenore explains in the the article.

Though my online identity is something I am proud of, I wanted to even better represent myself and demonstrate my Web-savyy. Some ways I have molded it are through buying my domain name using GoDaddy, creating this blog, posting comments on other blogs and creating a LinkedIn page.

Bottom line: Anyone going to journalism or in journalism should be very aware of their online identity and be proactive in establishing and shaping his/her online identity.

Weigh in: What do you think about having an online identity? Do you do anything to shape it?

Trying to 'survive and thrive' in journalism

A crash course EVERYONE in journalism needs...

Last night I started reading a little, 128-page book that was sent to me in the mail early in the fall semester. "Journalism 2.0: How to Survive and Thrive" by Mark Briggs (assistant managing editor for interactive news at The News Tribune in Tacoma, Wa.) covers a range of topics that are pertinent to the modern reporter.

Some of the material has just been a review, but I have also gleaned many interesting facts and bits of advice that have spurred a number of ideas for The Miami Hurricane.

Here's a list of topics I've leafed through thus far: RSS feeds, Web 2.0, tools and toys, new reporting methods, how to blog, how to report news for the Web and digital audio and podcasting.